A review by kristinasshelves
Hell's Paradise: Jigokuraku, Vol. 1 by Yuji Kaku
4.0
This manga starts off with an attempted beheading on a character that looks a whole lot like Near from Deathnote. We quickly find out this Near look-alike named Gabimaru The Hollow is a skilled ninja who is incapable of dying, despite witnessing several torturous methods of execution attempted against him. He claims to want to die, but love for his wife keeps him clinging to life. Gabimaru is tasked to travel to an enigmatic island with a band of vicious criminals to compete for a pardon to be released from his ninja duties and live a normal life. Once he arrives on the island with the group of heinous criminals, he quickly encounters insane creatures hellbent on destroying anyone in the vicinity.
The art style is incredibly dark and graphic, but very well executed. It seems odd to say I enjoyed art that was at times horrific, but was overall very creative and will stick with me. While this is definitely a horror manga not meant for the squeamish, it is woven with messages of being who you are and allowing yourself to care about others. I was reminded of the phrase “no man is an island”. I cannot wait to continue with this series and hope there will be an anime adaptation in the future.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a PDF of this title for review.
The art style is incredibly dark and graphic, but very well executed. It seems odd to say I enjoyed art that was at times horrific, but was overall very creative and will stick with me. While this is definitely a horror manga not meant for the squeamish, it is woven with messages of being who you are and allowing yourself to care about others. I was reminded of the phrase “no man is an island”. I cannot wait to continue with this series and hope there will be an anime adaptation in the future.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a PDF of this title for review.